Written By: Stacey Sprain
We’re all familiar with many of the components of LQI because most of them have been effective for quite some time now. We’ve become accustomed to checking interested parties against various exclusionary lists, validating each borrower’s social security number, assuring we’re including unit numbers in property addresses for condominium units, rounding the LTV calculations properly, following policies to detect and uncover undisclosed debts etc.
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The last and most complex components of LQI are in the process of being utilized and rolled out right now. Fannie Mae offers a voluntary data check system to approved seller/servicers called Earlycheck. Many of the big lenders are starting to utilize Earlycheck when they receive mortgage loans for underwriting and purchasing.
What is Earlycheck?
Earlycheck is an automated system that allows lenders opportunities to run various data comparison checks throughout any points in the loan process. The initial release includes checks for DU Compare (comparison of input loan application data with the data used in the most recent DU submission); SSN checks; occupancy checks; address checks; unit number checks; DTI checks; loan limit checks; checks for required delivery fields; and other basic eligibility and data integrity checks.
The system works similar to automated underwriting in that it has the ability to be integrated within an origination software system like Calyx, Contour or Encompass. With the touch of a button the system retrieves the loan application data entry and runs it up against the automated underwriting system data entry to assure that data entry matches within allowable tolerances. Once the data compare is run, the system offers a report which looks similar to automated underwriting findings. The results contain messages that highlight the issues that need to be resolved (i.e., failed checks); the corresponding delivery severities, and key result data (including key calculated values and the standardized property address for the subject property). For DU loans, the results also show a comparison of the input loan data with the data used in the most recent DU submission, as well as key DU Underwriting Findings information. Earlycheck can also accommodate the uploading of FNMA 3.2 format files to the Earlycheck platform right at Fannie Mae’s website.
Why is Earlycheck an Important Tool?
Earlycheck is important and valuable because it can help lenders identify data mismatch problems sooner in the loan process so that corrections can be made prior to delivering the loan to the end lender or in the case of the end lender, can help them correct data errors prior to loan delivery to Fannie Mae.
If you are not an approved Fannie Mae Seller/Servicer, you should check to see if your lenders are utilizing Earlycheck and see if you are able to access their Earlycheck system to perform your own Earlycheck runs in order to capture and correct data mismatches before you deliver loans to them. This will save you time and money because you’ll be able to rectify problems before the lender catches them by utilizing Earlycheck at the point of delivery.
The good news is that Earlycheck is free! There is no cost for approved seller/servicers to utilize the system. Fannie Mae does, however, require that approved seller/servicers register with Fannie Mae for access to the program. Approved seller/servicers will find registration materials athttps://www.efanniemae.com/sf/technology/accountmanage/earlycheck.jsp.
Earlycheck Tools & Resources
Fannie Mae provides a vast number of helpful resources as well as a short recorded presentation on the overview of Earlycheck.
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• Overview of Earlycheck
• Earlycheck FAQ
• Earlycheck Integration Specifications
• Earlycheck 11 Minute Recorded Overview Presentation
• Earlycheck Job Aids
• Log in to Launch Earlycheck (for approved users only)
About The Author
Stacey Sprain - As an NAMP® staff writer, Ms. Stacey Sprain is currently a NAMP® member in good standing, and is a NAMP® Certified Ambassador Loan Processor (NAMP®-CALP). With over 15+ years of mortgage banking experience, Stacey is also a Quality Control Manager for a major mortgage lending institution. If you would like to become a volunteer writer for us, please email us at: contact@mortgageprocessor.org.
